There has been a lot of talk about carbon taxes lately, and kudos goto Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach and Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall for refusing to sugar-coat the message about the economic harm a federal carbon tax would cause. Last week, Stelmach said a national carbon tax would increase the cost of energy, reduce Alberta's competitiveness and have a negative trickle-down effect across Canada. Wall said a national carbon tax would "kneecap" Saskat-chewan's economy. It doesn't get clearer than that. But just to make sure all finance ministers get the message, on Tuesday, Canadian Federation of Independent Business executive vice-president Garth Whyte wrote to the federal, provincial and territorial finance ministers to urge them to reject calls for a carbon tax. Business owners and consumers are already struggling because of the rapidly rising cost of fuel. An additional tax is the last thing we all need. Alberta charges a nine-cent-a-litre fuel tax, while the federal government collects 10 cents a litre, including an extra1.5 cent-a-litre excise tax that was supposed to be a "temporary" deficit-fighting measure.

To add to the load, the GST is charged on top of these taxes, resulting in a tax-on-tax windfall of one additional cent for every litre of gas sold. With gas prices in Calgary hovering around the $1.30 mark, these fuel taxes comprise 20 cents of the cost. We don't need a carbon tax. We already have a carbon tax. Election conscious politicians should take note that a new fuel tax will not be popular. In its last budget, B.C. passed a carbon tax that will add 7.24 cents to the cost of gas by 2012. A March 2008 poll by Compass Inc. for the Vancouver Sun found that 61 per cent of the public called the carbon tax "bad." Less than half felt it would help fight climate change. A CFIB survey of members found only 14 per cent of small business owners supported the move. Environmental economists like to point out that the most efficient way to get consumers to conserve is to impose a carbon tax to make the price of fuel more expensive.

That thinking may have made sense when gas was only 60 cents a litre; it makes no sense as prices rise toward the $1.50 per litre mark. Market forces are already raising prices high enough to encourage consumers to change their behaviour. They are so high, in fact, they are causing real hardship. For instance, a CFIB member from Prince George called to say he is barely hanging on: He has five trucks on the road and pays about $50,000 per month for fuel. The carbon tax, in addition to the highly volatile fuel prices, may cause him to lose his business. Greenhouse growers are reporting that massive increases in fuel costs may also affect their ability to stay in business. Farmers are opting out of certain crops because the high cost of fuel doesn't leave enough to pay for fertilizer. Recreational tour businesses are contemplating closing down because they can't make a profit. In CFIB's recent Business Barometer survey, a full 71 per cent of entrepreneurs said energy costs were a factor negatively impacting their business. If anything, the federal and provincial governments should be lowering taxes to help ease this burden -- they should certainly not be increasing them.

B.C. has said it will implement its carbon tax in a way that is revenue neutral: in other words, use the additional revenues raised from a carbon tax to reduce other types of taxes. This may make the tax revenue neutral from the government's perspective, but it will not be revenue neutral for individual firms or families. Many will see their fuel bills increase by far more than any tax saving they might receive. B.C. municipalities are already saying they will have to raise property taxes to help pay for higher fuel costs caused by the new tax. It is also important to remember that there are not energy-efficient alternatives for everything yet. There are no hybrid trucks hauling semi-trailers; solar or wind power cannot fuel farm combines. Rural families face long drives to town to pick up essentials. Residents of remote, northern communities need to get essential products flown or trucked in. A carbon tax won't change consumer behaviour in these situations: it will just impose a punishing new burden on those who areal ready suffering. Currently in the United States, presidential candidates in both parties are discussing possible ways of reducing pressure on consumers facing rising fuel prices.